What's on in Cartagena, Colombia through the year

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Hay Festival Cartagena

• Festival

  Cartagena Music Festival

  5–15 Jan · usuallyMajor festivalBook early

  A week of classical concerts in the churches and theatres inside the walls in early January, with free open-air nights in the plazas. It fills the small hotels of the old town. Source ↗

• Festival

  Hay Festival Cartagena

  29 Jan – 1 FebMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  Four days of writers and public conversations across the walled city at the end of January, in Spanish and English. The busiest week of the season for the old-town hotels. Source ↗

Still on: Cruise season (1 Nov – 15 Apr (usually)), Trade wind season (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually)), Christmas and New Year peak (18 Dec – 5 Jan)

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Hay Festival Cartagena

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Hay Festival Cartagena (29 Jan – 1 Feb), Cruise season (1 Nov – 15 Apr (usually)), Trade wind season (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Cartagena film festival

• Festival

  Cartagena film festival

  5–20 Mar · usuallyCrowded

  The oldest film festival in Latin America, with free screenings on the walls and in the plazas of the old town; the walled city fills for a week and the boutique hotels go early. Source ↗

• Holiday

  Semana Santa

  20 Mar – 25 Apr · usuallyEaster & Holy WeekCrowdedClosures

  Colombia's biggest domestic travel week lands on the coast: flights from Bogotá double, the beaches at Bocagrande are shoulder to shoulder and Thursday and Friday shut most businesses. Source ↗

Still on: Cruise season (1 Nov – 15 Apr (usually)), Trade wind season (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Busy — between the peaks, Semana Santa

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Semana Santa (20 Mar – 25 Apr (usually)), Cruise season (1 Nov – 15 Apr (usually)), Trade wind season (15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Shoulder season — between the peaks

Nothing new starts in May.

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, Mid-year recess in Colombia

• Season

  Veranillo dry spell

  20 Jun – 31 Jul · usuallyDry season

  A dip in the middle of the wet season — Cartagena gets a little less rain in July than the months either side — which is why it's the pick for the islands offshore. It is a tendency, not a guarantee. Source ↗

Busy — between the peaks, Mid-year recess in Colombia

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Veranillo dry spell (20 Jun – 31 Jul (usually))

Quiet — the editor's quiet month

• Season

  Rains and street flooding

  15 Aug – 15 Nov · usuallyMonsoonRisk

  The wettest stretch of the year comes in short violent afternoons, and the old city's streets turn into arroyos deep enough to strand a taxi for an hour before it drains away. Source ↗

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Rains and street flooding (15 Aug – 15 Nov (usually))

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, October recess week in Colombia

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Rains and street flooding (15 Aug – 15 Nov (usually))

Busy — between the peaks, Cruise season

• Season

  Cruise season

  1 Nov – 15 Apr · usuallyCrowded

  The dry months are also the ship months, and on a two-ship morning the walled city and the Castillo San Felipe belong to guided groups until about four in the afternoon. Source ↗

• Festival

  Fiestas de Independencia

  11–16 NovMajor festivalCrowded

  More than a week of parades, cabildos and street dancing around the declaration of independence on 11 November, ending with the national beauty pageant. Loud, wet, and entirely local. Source ↗

Still on: Rains and street flooding (15 Aug – 15 Nov (usually))

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Cruise season

• Season

  Trade wind season

  15 Dec – 15 Apr · usuallyCrowded

  A steady breeze off the sea holds the humidity down and makes the walled town walkable in the middle of the day. It also chops the water up, which the boats out to the Rosario islands feel.

• Holiday

  Christmas and New Year peak

  18 Dec – 5 JanChristmas & New YearCrowdedBook early

  Colombians arrive for the holidays and the old town is at its fullest and most expensive. Book the boats and the restaurants before you fly. Source ↗

Still on: Cruise season (1 Nov – 15 Apr (usually))